Closing Time
by shinko112
Summary: Friendship is a bond that binds, a foundation, a constant in life's inconsistancies. During the suffering and the happiness frienship is there. The gratest tragedy in friendship is unrequited love.


New oneshot, first non-school thing I've written in a long time.This story contains some personal details in the dialogue, some of the stuff verbatim. People who know me in real life know exactly which conversations and details I've added, and know who I had the conversations with. I've been in a similar situation like this before, sans the location, living arrangements, and things like that so this fic I guess could be based off my own life. Based on doesn't mean exactly as movies based on books have taught us.

Closing Time

_Closing time  
Open all the doors and let you out into the world  
Closing time  
Turn all of the lights on over every boy and every  
girl  
Closing time  
One last call for alcohol so finish your whiskey or  
beer  
Closing time  
You don't have to go home but you can't stay here_

Kikyou.

The name burned his tongue.

Kikyou.

He snarled, downing the rest of his drink. He hated drinking, hated the taste of hard liquor pouring down his throat. He hated all of it. Mostly he hated his reason for being inside the bar, alone and drinking yet another mind altering drink.

Kikyou.

Everything ended with her, or started, maybe connected to. Oh hell he didn't know. She was the reason he was alone. That much he was sure of. He ordered another, something stronger, despite the fact that it was late and the bar would be closing soon. He didn't care. He was still too sober if he could think somewhat clearly. He wasn't drunk enough to forget her face, her voice, her touch. He'd be sick tomorrow, the youkai blood in him not enough to burn the alcohol off fast enough for his ningen half. Not that he wasn't already sick, pathetic really if he really thought about it. The point, however, was not to think. He took a sip of his drink. Ignoring those around him. He didn't need someone to catch him on the rebound. He didn't want to talk to another blubbering drunk about his problems. He didn't want any bar room advice. He just wanted to be left alone in his self-loathing, wallowing in his sorrow, drown in alcohol. That or beat the shit out of someone, but that alternative wasn't acceptable. He couldn't take his anger out on some innocent bystander. This was between him and Kikyou. Or it was. It was just him now. Kikyou washed her hands of him. He cursed finishing his drink. It wasn't enough. He could still think. He didn't bother to order another; he knew that one more wouldn't make a difference. It was too late for him to order more than one.

One by one those drowning their sorrows in amber bottles shuffled drunkenly out the door, others accompanied by one nights worth of comfort also left in mass. He remained seated on his barstool reeking of alcohol and cigarette smoke, and not caring. It was time for him to leave, not for home of course. There were too many memories that he was incapable of facing. Wounds still fresh and raw. And, and he had loved her. It hadn't been enough. He slid off the bar stool, not as gracefully as he could have in different circumstances, but at least he didn't sway when he stood up straight. It was late. Not that it mattered he had nowhere to be. No one waiting for him at home. He needed to find something to do, keep his mind busy, block out thoughts of her.

Kikyou.

"Inuyasha," a familiar voice called out.

He didn't turn to look or face the voice's owner. He didn't need this. Not right now.

"Inuyasha?" The word was saturated by worry and sadness.

He looked at her. "What do you want Kikyou?"

Brown eyes widened then narrowed, "I'm not Kikyou. If you weren't incapacitated you might have noticed."

He stared disbelievingly at her, it had to be Kikyou. Except the eyes where different, Kikyou's eyes were more guarded and cold. And her scent, similar but, "Kagome."

"Inuyasha."

"Stop repeating my name. What are you doing here?"

"I- I heard what happened between you and Kikyou and I was worried about you. You weren't at your apartment and Miroku said that you might've gone out drinking. So, I came to look for you."

"Are you some kind of stupid?! Wandering alone at this time of night? I can't believe Miroku let you come alone!" He paused at the look on her face,"You didn't tell him you were gonna look for me didya?"

Her sheepish expression answered everything before anger quickly took over. "Excuse me, but we were worried. We didn't know what you would do if you got sufficiently drunk. If we were even right in thinking that you would go to a bar. You might've been starting a fight or something."

"What? You don't trust my judgment?"

"You do stupid things when you don't think about what you're doing."

"Ya, well it doesn't matter now 'cause you're going straight home. I'm walking you there myself and you better not pull a stunt like this again," he said grabbing her arm before muttering, "It's closing time anyway."

"Where you going home?" She asked giving him a disbelieving look.

"None of your business."

She tried to wrench her arm free but he was stronger than her, "Of course it's my business!"

"Really? Who says it is?"

She stopped moving staring at him and made several failed attempts to answer his question "I-we, erm. I'm your friend Inuyasha, I worry about you. Just because you're a hanyou and you can protect yourself against other youkai or something of that kind doesn't mean you're that great at protecting yourself from yourself."

"What are you babbling about? I'm not about to start punching myself."

"That's not what I meant!"

"Then maybe you should-"

"Excuse me."

Both Inuyasha and Kagome whirled around to see the bartender behind them, holding a broom.

"I'm afraid the two of you will have to leave, it's closing time."

"We were just leaving," Inuyasha informed him before dragging Kagome out the door.

_I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
Take me home_

The two walked in silence. Kagome looked at Inuyasha out of the corner if her eye. She worried about him, what Kikyou had done wounded him more than just emotionally she knew there was psychological damage done to him as well. He wasn't drunk; she knew that from the way he had been acting. She couldn't say she envied his ability to handle liquor well but it was no small feat. One cup of sake was usually enough for her but not Inuyasha; his youkai blood caused his body to process the alcohol too quickly for small amounts to inhibit his abilities. Still she hadn't expected to find him this sober given the time and the amount of alcohol he most likely drank. Inuyasha wasn't much of a drinker. Despite the difficulties he had with getting drunk, odd as that sounded, he still suffered when he drank too much and often was ill to his stomach for days after. The only times she'd witnessed Inuyasha drink enormous quantities of alcohol was when he tried to forget things. The last time had been when Izayoi died. Inuyasha had taken it as badly, if not worse than he was taking Kikyou's announcement. He really loved her.

"Inuyasha?"

He grunted in reply.

"I'm sorry for coming up on you like that; I just let my emotions take over. I should've trusted that you wouldn't do anything to make your, your situation worse."

"What situation? There is no situation."

She stopped walking. "But you and Kikyou-"

"Are through. Ya I know. Still does it come as a surprise to you?"

She looked at him in shock; he was taking the situation way too lightly. "But the two of you were so in love! I saw you together, you had eyes only for her and Kikyou wasn't so guarded around you. You loved her so much."

"Kikyou and I have been falling apart for awhile now. She wants something different; she's on a different path than I am. Evidently she thought I was holding her back, my lineage and reputation anyway. She never did accept the fact that I'm hanyou."

"But you loved her. How can you be so calm about your break up?"

"Because she wasn't everything I thought she was."

"You were thinking about marrying her! How can you go so suddenly from saying she's the love of your life to accepting the end of your relationship?"

"Do you remember the last fight I had with Kikyou?"

"No, you never told me about that. When did that happen?"

"A few weeks ago. She got angry at my apparent lack of responsibility. We argued, split up for a few days then got back together. Things weren't the same though. She became more secretive, more sarcastic, cold, and she lied to me on various occasions. I was finally seeing the real Kikyou. Or her angry side. Whatever. It was either going to be her or me. In the end it was her who ended it."

"But you were so upset. You were drinking!"

"I won't say that I'm not hurt. Knowing and expecting doesn't lessen the pain y'know. I want to forget her. She played with my emotions and blamed all our problems on me and that makes me mad. Still it was a long time in coming."

"I'm shocked. This doesn't make sense."

"Look, I don't wanna talk about it anymore."

She stared at him, this wasn't right. He was taking everything too well. She wanted to push the situation but knew that the wound was still to fresh and raw. She would keep her silence, for now.

_Closing time  
Time for you to go out to the places you will be from  
Closing time  
This room won't be open till your brothers or your  
sisters come  
So gather up your jackets, move it to the exits  
I hope you have found a friend  
Closing time  
Every new beginning comes from some other  
beginning's end_

"Inuyasha," Kagome started before letting out a yawn.

"It's late, Kagome, and you're tired. My apartments closer, you can crash there for tonight. Guest room is presentable now that her stuff's gone."

"Inu-"

"Damn it Kagome for once don't argue with me. You said you were worried about what I might do. Well this way you can keep an eye on me."

"Alright. Thank you. Are you sure you want me there though?"

"Feh. It's not like you've never been in my apartment before. 'Sides can't think of anyone else's company that I'd rather be with right now. Miroku would just piss me off."

She giggled, "He's not that bad and he is your best friend."

"So are you."

She smiled, "Yeah, I guess I am. We've been friends a long time and we've been through a lot. Even if you do annoy me to no end sometimes you're my best guy friend."

"I'll say we've been through stuff together. People assuming that we're dating, people telling us to date, and people wondering why we aren't dating. Those were awkward moments. People need to mind their own damn business."

"Seriously. You and me dating? We'd kill each other in a week."

"I know right." The two laughed at the absurdity of it.

"Remember that one time when, what's her name oh yeah Sakura asked us how long we'd been dating and your ex-girlfriend Hitomi was standing right next to you?"

"That one was a mess. And what about you and Hobo? He was afraid to ask you out for months because he thought we were dating and I might beat him up."

"His name was Hojo. At least he finally stopped listening to the rumors."

"Whatever his name was he should've just asked you, I knew that the two of you wouldn't last long. He was too complacent for you. No backbone."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It means that he was too perfect. You got bored with him never disagreeing with you, always doing stuff for you, always knowing what to do. You wanted more than that remember? You were always complaining about how there was something missing. And then you hooked up with that _wolf,"_ he spat the word out as if it were poison, "and you can't deny that you didn't enjoy the occasional arguments. Still he wasn't perfect either was he?"

"Alright you can stop gloating over my failed relationship with Kouga. Why you hate him so much is beyond me."

"The guy was a bastard Kagome. Obnoxious. Fickle, self-centered-"

"Sounds familiar," she replied with a wry grin.

"You better not be referring to me."

"Wouldn't dream of it Inuyasha."

"Liar."

"And just what do you mean by that?"

"You were comparing me to that stinky wolf. Don't deny it."

"You have to admit both of you are stubborn, brash, arrogant, and canines."

"So? What's your point?"

"Maybe the reason the two of you hate each other so much is because you're so much alike. Ever considered that possibility?"

"Feh. Your brain really is sleep addled if you think that."

"Lack of sleep has nothing to do with that statement." She shivered, pulling her jacket around her more securely.

"Kind of fitting isn't it."

"Eh?"

"That it's winter, the season most associated with death. With the end. And it's also the time that Kikyou and I broke up."

She stopped walking and stared at him.

He looked at her puzzled "What?"

"That was almost insightful. Give me a minute to process that."

He made a face. "I ain't that stupid Kagome. I got a brain y'know."

"I know you have a brain. You don't always use it but you have one. It's rare to hear comments like that coming from you sometimes. You never cease to surprise me."

"Eh?"

"You're unpredictable. We never really know how you're gonna react to something. You're so volatile, but that makes things interesting."

"I'm not as unpredictable as you say. You usually know what I'm thinking-"

"Scary as that fact is."

"Actually I think it's kinda funny."

"You would."

"You love me."

"As a friend."

"Well duh."

"Why are we discussing this again?"

"Because your life revolves around me?" he asked with a smirk.

She smacked his arm, "Jerk. I don't know why I even bother."

"Ow the pain, make it stop."

She laughed.

_  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
Take me home_

She shivered again, and jumped when she felt him drape his jacket over his shoulder. She started to protest but he stopped her with a look.

"Don't. You need it more'n I do. Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth, Kagome."

"Alright. Thank you."

"Feh."

The continued walking, the silence stretched between them creating a chasm that neither really wanted to cross. Words did not suffice in conveying what they felt. Kagome was curious but she respected her friend's privacy, knowing that prying would succeed in him moving further away from her and everyone else. That was the last he needed. They'd both been through several break-ups; the emotional rollercoaster was never as bad as it was now. The reason for the change was easily identified, they never experienced a serious relationship before, until Inuyasha met Kikyou that is. She knew he would eventually crack, once he relaxed enough in her presence. It would take time but she'd always been there to pick up the pieces and help put him back together just as he had always been the one to put her back together. They worked that way.

People wondered why they didn't date. They never really thought about it seriously. The idea seemed laughable to them. They were friends, friends who harassed, insulted and laughed at each other. What type of romance could that spawn? No, they would ruin the friendship they had if they ever made that decision. It wasn't as though they'd never discussed the prospect before it was just that it didn't feel right they told each other. Then again none of her other relationships felt right either, nor his.

They weren't complete opposites, despite what people thought. She was more academically oriented than him, but he wasn't stupid. Just lazy and bored with school. He could prove to be really insightful and understand metaphors and symbolism faster than she could sometimes. It surprised her but at the same time she realized it wasn't something he proclaimed to the whole world. He rarely read, but when he did his was a fast reader who could retain what he read. Literature was his thing. That didn't change the fact that he was lazy. Lazy, uncouth, insensitive and, and he was her best friend. And she worried about him.

None of their friends could believe that he was dating Kikyou just as none of her friends could believe that Kikyou was dating him. They were shocked when they found out that the two were dating. No one believed it would last.

Kagome had.

She'd seen the looks, the softened expression that Kikyou had in her eyes when she saw Inuyasha. She saw his almost tender looks and she knew that the two would overcome what anyone said.

But the relationship failed.

She still refused to believe it ended so harshly. The strongest relationships sometimes did. Maybe it was better this way, with the anger and the resentment. Ending on good terms sometimes didn't work out. Sometimes the former significant other still held romantic feelings towards his ex and to see them on occasion, to be reminded and introduced to his replacement hurt and spawned jealousy. This way the two wouldn't be forced to socialize together during friendly get-togethers.

Still, she had believed.

_  
Closing time  
Time for you to go out to the places you will be from_

Inuyasha's apartment was clean.

It was something she never really understood about him. He cared so little about appearance. Kouga lived in disarray, clothing, papers, and old cartons of food spread haphazardly around his quarters; even Miroku wasn't as organized as Inuyasha with his Buddhist relics, magazines, and books filling every available space.

Kikyou wasn't to blame for the ordered nature of his apartment.

He'd always kept his room organized, even when they were younger. He lived simply, no nick-knacks on a table, or personal paraphernalia scattered around the floor. A few chairs, a coffee table and the regular electronics filled his living room. His bedroom was small, one bed, closet, dresser, and a small desk with his laptop on it.

He never answered he outright whenever she asked him about it, he just shrugged and said it was the way he was.

She stopped asking.

She looked at Inuyasha, she was warm and comfortable since she had been wearing his jacket as well as her own but she couldn't be sure if he was warm or not. She was tired, but she didn't want him getting sick or anything. Not on top of all the stuff he'd been dealing with.

"Do you want some hot cocoa or something, Inuyasha?" she asked suddenly.

"Aren't you going to go to bed?"

"Are you?"

"That's none of your business, I'm a hanyou, I don't need that much sleep. You, however, are a ningen and pathetically weak. You need to sleep. So go on, go to bed."

"I'm not that sleepy."

"Fine, whatever, not like you got anything planned for tomorrow so I guess you can crash here until noon."

She laughed.

_I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
Take me home_

"Hey, Kagome. Why do you put up with me so much," he asked stopping her half-way to the kitchen.

"What? You're my best friend. It's part of the job description."

"That's not what I meant."

She looked at him before smiling, "Because I care, stupid. I'm your friend, I listen, I yell, I make you ramen, and I care about your wellbeing. Why? Because you listen, yell, love ramen, and because you protect my wellbeing."

He hugged her.

"Thank you," he whispered pulling her closer to him. "You're one of the few people who can make me feel better."

"Deal works both ways y'know."

"I know, and I'm glad. Don't know what I did to deserve you as a friend but I must've done something right."


End file.
